New SVP campaign also causes red heads within the party

On Sunday, the SVP Switzerland published its new campaign posters on social media. "Should leftists and nice guys destroy Switzerland? Rather vote #SVP!" was the text for the subject that caused outrage: worms bearing the colors of political opponents and the EU are eating away at an apple that symbolizes Switzerland.    

The reactions were not long in coming - and rather surprisingly, the party's own ranks immediately fired in the direction of the party leadership on Twitter. SVP National Councilor and communications consultant Claudio Zanetti has little to say for the new campaign. "Those in the picture are neither leftists nor nice guys. They're worms to be exterminated. What do you expect from this unspeakable imagery? Who is supposed to take you seriously there?"

As the Tamedia newspapers write, the visual language also caused displeasure among other SVP representatives. Pentti Aellig, former president of the SVP Schaffhausen and candidate for the National Council, directly linked the success of his own section to the voter appeal: "In Schaffhausen, we also have an SVP voter share of 35 percent because we do without such posters," Aellig tweeted directly to SVP President Albert Rösti. Followed by the request: "Think of all the non-party commissions & list connections - and stop this sujet."

The anti-Semitic diatribe Der Stürmer depicted Jews in Nazi Germany as worms, among other things - on Twitter, numerous users drew parallels to the images used at the time.

The tenor was that portraying the political opponent as "worms" or "vermin" was not worthy of a democratic party. Some think that the party has gone too far this time and that such a portrayal should not be accepted without comment. Others write that the SVP is now showing its true colors. Still others warn not to fall into the trap: Any reaction to the calculated provocation would benefit the SVP.

Calculated provocation

Even campaign professionals judge the question of benefit differently. In his blog, Mark Balsiger recalls the stabbing ad 25 years ago. The pattern is always the same, he writes. A lead medium receives the subject exclusively, other media immediately follow suit. Thousands reflexively share it on Facebook and Twitter.

"Each time there is a demand that the provocateurs withdraw the subject. Thus, the subject lasts for several days, maybe even weeks. It is the opponents of the SVP who provide enormous coverage with their feverish reactions. The pattern still works, the opponents fall into the same trap again and again, each subject goes viral through the roof."

Distract from problems

Although the SVP hardly won any additional votes on October 20 with the apple and worm theme, it did attract attention, writes Balsiger. In this way, it can also distract attention from pressing problems such as the climate crisis or health insurance premiums. The SVP's rise also has to do with attention economy, he says. "No other party internalized media logic so early and so consistently."

Campaigner Reda el Arbi comes to a different conclusion in his blog. He sees the subject as a "knee-jerk" shot. The poster portrays all political opponents as worms, as vermin, he notes. It is "NSDAP communication in its purest form, not even hinted at or hidden".

Gift to the left

The conservative, middle-class voters of the SVP are likely to feel repelled by this poster, el Arbi writes further. "The squabbles over the SVP's orientation have been weighing on the party internally for a long time. This is likely to keep more voters away from the ballot box."

The normal right-wing bourgeois farmer, craftsman, SMEs do not want Nazi posters for their party. And fortunately, elections in Switzerland cannot be won with right-wing extremists alone. "Never before has the political opponent helped the left so much before an election," writes el Arbi. Negative publicity does exist, he adds. The poster and the defensive communication of the party president make the party look weak and desperate.

Criticism within the party

In fact, individual SVP politicians also voiced criticism on Twitter. Zurich National Council member Claudio Zanetti, who is considered a hardliner, was often quoted. "Those in the picture are neither leftists nor nice guys. They are worms to be exterminated," he wrote on Twitter, asking, "Who is supposed to take you seriously?"

National Council candidate Michael Frauchiger of the SVP Zurich wrote: "Laugh? Cry? Ashamed? I don't know! I doubt the party leadership of the SVP the longer the more. The advertising company must be replaced in my opinion, including those who wave through and pay for something like this!"

No worm for the BDP

The Basel SVP cantonal councilor Pascal Messerli finds the poster "bad and clumsy", the Schaffhausen SVP cantonal councilor Pentti Aellig called on the party leadership to stop the subject with a view to list connections. Some commentators in the social media expressed the suspicion that this was also part of the staging.

Meanwhile, politicians from other parties tried to escape the outrage trap with a different approach. BDP President Martin Landolt (GL), for example, wrote on Twitter: "What pisses me off most is that the yellow and black worms are missing..."

Bernese National Council member Adrian Amstutz (BE) is responsible for the apple subject. "As campaign manager, I bear the responsibility. Period," he said in an interview with Blick.ch. He added that the SVP wanted to save direct democracy. "The Nazis did exactly the opposite; they established (...) a dictatorship." (hae/SDA)

There were numerous reactions on Twitter, most of them negative. Many pointed out that the imagery was reminiscent of Nazi propaganda. Images from the Nazi newspaper The striker with apple and worm were used for comparison.